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Lobbyists Spending Increases As Health Care Debate Rages On

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 11:25:2

Washington, D.C. (AHN) - The lobbying expenses of the top 13 health insurers and their industry association, America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP#, spent nearly $8.2 million in the third quarter of 2009 to influence Congress on upcoming health care legislation.

Nonpartisan campaign finance watchdog Public Campaign Action Fund #PCAF) says the amount is equal to an 11 percent increase over the pace of their spending in the first half of the year.

"Congress is marching toward passing landmark legislation to overhaul the health care system, and the health insurance industry is fighting them every step of the way," said David Donnelly, national campaigns director of Public Campaign Action Fund. "These insurance giants may be running out of time, but clearly they haven't run out of political cash."

According to PCAF analysis, which was based on figures compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics, these top insurers and AHIP have spent $22,957,382 to lobby Congress and the Administration from January through September. AHIP, the insurers' trade association, has spent more than $6 million this year. The analysis reviewed data for the top insurance companies as identified by Fortune magazine's rankings.

With the recent health care reforms, being debated by lawmakers in a bitter round of political wrangling it is likely that those figures will skyrocket during the next analysis of lobbyists spending.

Donnelly continues, "These insurance industries have invested heavily in expensive lobbyists and campaign contributions to make sure their needs are met while the rest of us are stuck with a broken health care system and little way to have our voices heard in Washington."

Other big health-care spenders in the third quarter included Pfizer Inc. ($5.42 million); the American Hospital Association ($3.8 million); the American Medical Association ($3.95 million); Amgen Inc. ($3 million); Bayer Corp. ($2.45 million); and America's Health Insurance Plans ($2.4 million).

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